Since she left, I’ve been living alone with my dad. I keep worrying that people at school are going to find out about what happened and make fun of me.

Is it weird to live alone with just your dad? I’m too scared to talk about it with anyone. Please help, my life feels like it’s falling apart.

Meredith, 13

YOU have my sympathy for the difficult times that you’re going through. I can imagine that it was a particularly destructive separation.

Your dad must be feeling a lot of pain and anger. I can imagine that talking about what’s happened is not something he’s keen on.

What’s important is that you remember you are your own person and that this is happening to you too.

There’s nothing wrong with opening up to people and getting some of the pain you’re feeling off of your chest. It’s perfectly normal to live with just one parent and I think if you asked around you’d find you’re certainly not the only person in your school in this position.

It may even be a good idea to talk to a counsellor, either at your school or privately. Try to bring this up with your dad. Let him know how you feel and that you have problems coping.